China’s activewear boom puts spring in foreign brands’ step

{"text":[[{"start":7.55,"text":"When Rapha chief executive Fran Millar visited the upmarket British cycling clothing company’s new store in Shanghai this year, she was struck by the “level of enthusiasm”."}],[{"start":17.2,"text":"“Everyone was on £10,000 bikes in really beautiful kit wearing clip-in shoes,” she said. “It’s obviously a market that, when consumers get into something, they get all the way in.”"}],[{"start":28.4,"text":"Since opening its first China store late last year, Rapha said its business in the country had seen “consistent positive growth” and that footfall was among the highest of its stores globally."}],[{"start":40.8,"text":"Across China’s booming activewear market, such demand is no isolated case. Even as economic momentum has slowed and the likes of Nike have struggled to position themselves, a pronounced shift towards health-related activities has driven remarkable growth for specialised activewear companies."}],[{"start":null,"text":"

"}],[{"start":59.65,"text":"Recent data shows significant sales jumps for a host of foreign companies, from yogawear makers to hiking gear specialists, which break down their China exposure to varying degrees."}],[{"start":70.6,"text":"Sales at Amer Sports, a Finnish company partly owned by China’s Anta that owns shoe brand Salomon and outdoor clothing group Arc’teryx, leapt 43 per cent to $1.9bn last year across mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan."}],[{"start":87.3,"text":"Swiss shoemaker On said it had seen “standout momentum” in China and South Korea as its first-quarter sales rose 44 per cent in the Asia-Pacific region, while Columbia Sportswear said China net sales grew last year on “continued strong consumer demand”."}],[{"start":105.4,"text":"Such growth is in some cases counteracting a challenging global backdrop. Lululemon’s China net revenue rose 29 per cent to $1.8bn in the year to January, in contrast to a 1 per cent decline in its Americas net revenue that has put pressure on its share price."}],[{"start":122.80000000000001,"text":"Lululemon’s net revenues in China are now more than four times their 2021 level. The company said in its annual report it planned to “continue to invest in China Mainland”, where it expects to open most of its new stores this year."}],[{"start":135.75,"text":"San Yan Ng, Lululemon’s regional president, told the FT in a statement that its growth reflected products catering to local consumers and the company’s understanding of an “evolving role” for wellbeing in China."}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":148.25,"text":"Interest in outdoor activities has gathered pace since the Covid-19 pandemic, part of the longer-term development of an urban consumer base that first emerged in the 1990s."}],[{"start":158.8,"text":"Joe Eberling, chief executive of Wild Rampage, the strategic partner for Osprey in China, said he recalled jogging there in the 1980s. “People would stop and ask me if I was all right,” he said."}],[{"start":171.65,"text":"Now, groups of runners are a common sight on the streets of Shanghai, with various brands organising events as part of community-building exercises that blur into China’s evolving social mores."}],[{"start":183.35,"text":"Rapha said it organised rides almost daily in Shanghai, with one in early May attracting 120 participants. Ng at Lululemon cited a “community-led” approach in which the company hosts events such as “Summer Sweat Games” that draw in thousands of participants."}],[{"start":200.25,"text":"Sherry Shen, a yoga teacher in the wealthy coastal city of Hangzhou, said Lululemon was a kind of “social currency” in China and might typically be bought by those with a monthly income above Rmb10,000 ($1,500). “Wearing it implies my purchasing power is high,” she said."}],[{"start":218.35,"text":"Rapha, which already has a presence across Asia including in Australia, initially entered the Chinese market in 2024 through Alibaba’s online shopping platform Tmall. “We could just see there was an appetite for the product,” said Millar. In contrast, the company recently closed five stores elsewhere, including four in the US."}],[{"start":237.75,"text":"Eberling said Osprey’s China sales had more than tripled since the pandemic. “We are a very, very bright spot on their business planning,” he said of Osprey’s global operations."}],[{"start":248.35,"text":"Consumer goods companies still face various challenges in China, including the risk of conflicting demands from Beijing and the west."}],[{"start":256.45,"text":"China’s commerce ministry blacklisted PVH, the owner of Calvin Klein, last year after accusing the company of “unreasonably boycotting” cotton from Xinjiang, where the US alleges Beijing compels Uyghur Muslims to work. "}],[{"start":270.95,"text":"Washington in 2021 banned imports of all products from the region unless companies could prove they were not made with forced labour, allegations that Beijing has strongly denied."}],[{"start":281.45,"text":"China’s vast property market, where many households store much of their wealth, also continues to slow, although house prices remain high by global standards in the richest cities."}],[{"start":293.25,"text":"“[If] I look at my sales for the last 25 years, selling outdoor products in China . . . it was never always up, it’s a jagged edge,” said Eberling."}],[{"start":302.65,"text":"“I feel very confident there’s going to be a growing percentage of people participating in all sorts of activities. I think we’re in the early stages on the growth of the total size of the market.”"}],[{"start":314.59999999999997,"text":"Additional contributions from Tina Hu in Beijing"}],[{"start":325.2,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1780210797_2811.mp3"}